


constantly, consistently, continually, you.

by thechenesis



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Flash Fic, Fluff, Jongdae's Birthday Week 2020, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:49:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26537590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thechenesis/pseuds/thechenesis
Summary: Jongdae needs to leave. Minseok chooses to wait.
Relationships: Kim Jongdae | Chen/Kim Minseok | Xiumin
Comments: 4
Kudos: 19
Collections: Challenge #7 — Out of Order





	constantly, consistently, continually, you.

Minseok opened the door.

He was there, carrying nothing but a backpack; bronze-skinned, his shaggy hair longer than Minseok could remember seeing before. But there it was: the same spark in his eyes ― that never fading vital energy that emanated from his pores, dripped from his skin, and thoroughly engulfed Minseok in its presence.

“Minseok-hyung,” Jongdae greeted, smile tired but bright as a thousand stars, before he leaned his head against his shoulder. “I’m back.”

It was a late afternoon.

Minseok looked out the window.

From his office, he could see the city stretching around him for miles and miles; beyond the buildings and houses, there was the Han river, and more land, and the sea.

Still farther, and further ― more land, and more sea.

Jongdae was somewhere out there.

He laid his pen down on the table.

There was a dull ache in his chest; an unfulfilled craving ― a yearning entrenched deep in his heart. He’d grown used to it by now, so much so that most of the time he barely remembered it.

For the past few years, that was the only life he’d known.

It was at times like this ― when the sun gave the land a goodbye kiss, its light reflected on the mirrored buildings blinding and dazzling to the naked eye ― that the thought of him invaded Minseok’s mind.

“We should break up.”

The man wasn’t surprised. When they’d started going out a couple of months earlier, Minseok had told him about his past.

“Is he coming back?” was all the man asked.

Minseok shrugged. “I don’t know.”

Minseok look at Jongdae, asleep next to him.

Then to the bag the other had packed up. Rather small, really. Jongdae wanted to save money by not paying for checked baggage.

His hair was golden now. Minseok thought it was fitting.

“I’ll always be here,” he whispered as he pushed the golden strands away from Jongdae’s forehead, then leaned down and gave him a kiss.

Jongdae, on his first year of high school, grinned wide as he saw Minseok walking towards him.

“How about my new haircut?” He shook his green bangs for effect. “Pretty cool, huh?”

It’d been a month since they’d last seen each other. Jongdae wanted to keep it a secret that they were going to the same high school, and thought he wouldn’t be able to keep his mouth shut if they hung out together.

The new haircut was just the icing on the cake.

They’d never spent that long apart ever since they were kids. Minseok hadn’t realized how much he missed Jongdae until he saw him during the welcoming ceremony; and now, as he watched him proudly exhibit his hideous hair, he understood.

That cliché ‘oh’ moment.

_Oh_.

Minseok ruffled Jongdae’s hair.

“You look silly.”

“We should break up.”

Minseok wasn’t surprised. He’d always known ― Jongdae was larger than life. The world was his home.

He also knew (and Jongdae did too) that his _own_ nature was different. He needed an anchor. A stable life. A routine.

They were both aware they wouldn’t ever be truly happy apart from each other ― but wouldn’t be either if they lived according to each other’s standards.

“Take as much time as you need,” Minseok breathed against Jongdae’s hand, kissing his knuckles softly. Lovingly. “I’ll wait.”

Minseok peeked through the curtains. In front of his house, there was a park. The neighborhood kids were playing soccer on the grass.

A short boy passed by, and then―

Their eyes met.

Minseok quickly kneeled down.

He waited a bit longer before daring to look outside again, and… he was gone.

His brows furrowed. He _should_ feel relieved; instead, what he felt was closer to disappointment. As a seven-year-old, he couldn’t quite get it.

Older people would call it loneliness.

He screamed when a head suddenly appeared on the other side of the window.

“D’you wanna play?”

As a child, Minseok was quick to recover from the scare. As soon as he realized it was a person behind the glass (the same boy he had seen before), his cheeks reddened as his feelings shifted from fright to shyness.

“You were looking because you wanna play, right?” The boy said. A few of his front teeth were missing. There was dirt on his face. He looked confident... happy.

Minseok opened the window.

“I… don’t want to play with them…” he mumbled weakly, despite his best efforts to sound tough.

The little boy stared at him for a brief moment.

“We can play here too,” he pointed towards the front yard. “But you can’t kick hard. If we break a window, my mommy will get angry.”

Minseok hesitated. He didn’t have friends outside school; what was he supposed to say? Minseok had always been interested in soccer, but had actually never played it before…

“Come on~” The little boy whined. “I have to go home for dinner!”

Minseok swallowed, summoned his courage, and went outside.

The two boys stood by the curb. The setting sun cloaked them in warm tones, hues of yellow and orange with tinges of red. Jongdae’s eyes –Minseok had learned his name as they played together – reflected the rays of fading sunshine in the most beautiful of ways, as if a flame was ablaze within them.

There was something about him Minseok couldn’t quite get, but he _felt it_.

An intensity – an electricity that charged the air around him with unescapable energy.

More than just feeling it… Minseok _welcomed_ it.

His words teetered on his mouth. He didn’t want to say goodbye. It sounded like an _end_. He didn’t want it to end.

“Will you… come back?” he muttered.

He had never seen Jongdae around before. Maybe he was just visiting a relative. Maybe they’d never see each other again.

The boy didn’t hesitate.

“I will.”

Minseok lifted his eyes up to him.

Instead of basking in sunlight, Jongdae seemed to be exuding it himself.

“I promise. I’ll always come back.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading - hope you liked it! ♥


End file.
